Attorney General Eric Holder threw down the race card and said on national television that at least some of the political resistance that he and President Obama face is due to the color of their skin.
“There’s a certain level of vehemence, it seems to me, that’s directed at me [and] directed at the president,” Mr. Holder told ABC News. “You know, people talking about taking their country back. … There’s a certain racial component to this for some people. I don’t think this is the thing that is a main driver, but for some, there’s a racial animus.”
As the New York Post noted, Mr. Holder is the first black attorney general serving under the country’s first black president.
Mr. Holder also went on to say that the country is “a fundamentally better place than we were 50 years ago,” The Hill reported.
“We’ve made lots of progress,” he said, referring to his status as the first black attorney general and Mr. Obama’s status as the first black president. “And that has to show that we have made a great deal of progress. But there’s still more we have to travel along this road so we get to the place that is consistent with our founding ideals.”
Mr. Holder also dug down in his comments he made years ago when he called the United States a “nation of cowards” on race, The Hill reported.
“I wouldn’t walk away from that speech,” he said, referring to his remarks during Mr. Obama’s first year in office. “I think we are still a nation that is too afraid to confront racial issues.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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